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There were always question marks over which lessons that executives from toy making giant Mattel would learn from the roaring success of Greta Gerwig’s Barbie. Some said it could show the power of giving a top indie filmmaker like Gerwig the budget, time and resources to make a piece of memorable – and at times subversive – cinema which drew on people’s childhood memories. However, it looks like executives have already decided to pick option B: create an intellectual property-driven movie machine, and crank out a film about every toy they can think of to boost profits. Because that’s what people liked about Barbie, right? Mattel wants to create a cinematic universe similar to that of Marvel, following the immense success of its first feature film – and they already have more than a dozen projects in the works. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Products that are already in line to get the Barbie treatment include “Barney”, “Polly Pocket,” and “Hot Wheels”. “Barbie, as a brand, has many different iterations. The product lines of Barbie is a very broad brand. In addition to the main Barbie figure, she has family, she has a lot of elements around in her universe,” Mattel chief executive Ynon Kreiz told Variety. “It’s a very rich universe… It’s a very broad and very elastic brand, in terms of opportunities.” “At the outset, we’re not saying, ‘Okay, let’s think already about movie two and three.’ Let’s get the first one right and make that a success. And if you do that, opportunities open up very quickly, once you establish the first movie as a successful representation of a franchise on the big screen.” “Successful movies lend themselves to more movies,” the CEO added. “Our ambition is to create film franchises.” Robbie Brenner, the Oscar-nominated producer in charge of Mattel’s new film division, said the company was hopeful Barbie would become a box office success, so that it would open the door for franchises like “Masters of the Universe” and “Hot Wheels". “Everybody hopes that when you create a movie that there is going to be a franchise,” Brenner told Variety. “That’s the hope — that it goes on and on and it’s a gift that keeps giving. But, in this day and age, you just want to get the first one right.” Here are the films Mattel wants to make next: Barney Produced by Daniel Kaluuya, the purple dinosaur is going to be made into a live-action movie. Brenner said: I don’t know that it’s necessarily going to be darker. It’s just going to be unique — more of like [Spike Jonze films] Being John Malkovich or an Adaptation." “Any movie that has Barney is not certainly going to be straightforward,” Brenner adds. Referencing the Seth MacFarlane comedies, she quips: “We’re not making Ted. You know what I mean?” The upcoming film will apparently be about “identity and finding who you love and who feels alienated” and “what does it all mean?” Brenner says the film will “be more adult and have adult themes — and sort of be a little bit off-kilter”. Polly Pocket Starring Emily In Paris star Lily Collins, the Polly Pocket dolls will be made into a film directed by Lena Dunham. Brenner said there is already a “great” script, and that Dunham and Collins would be “an amazing collaboration. Lena is so collaborative and rolls up her sleeves and really likes to roll around in notes and listen. She’s incredible”. “Lily is so smart and so specific and so productorial. It’s just been an incredible collaboration, so we are thrilled about it. Hopefully, we’ll be making that at some point in the future.” Hot Wheels This one will be produced by JJ Abrams – because the world needs yet another film about toy racing cars, of course. Abrams has described the adaptation as “grounded and gritty” and said the film will have “real characters that you can relate to, that are three-dimensional, that have emotional journeys”. She added: “Look at any JJ Abrams movie. All of his movies have an incredible story and incredible characters. That was something that was important to him — to make a movie that’s not just going to be fun and exciting, but that has real emotion and real stakes to it.” And plenty more… There is a film about Rock ‘Em Sock ‘Em Robots, starring Vin Diesel, which could be absolutely bizarre, while another doll franchise movie, American Girl, is “in the works”. Magic 8 Ball will “probably be a PG-13 thriller,” Brenner said, while a Masters Of The Universe film about the superhero He-Man could also become reality. Other projects include Thomas The Tank Engine (yep, that’s right folks) and, in a surprise turn, Uno. How corporate executives think a film about the playing card game will turn out is anybody’s guess. But it’s going to happen. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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N’Golo Kante’s impending departure from Chelsea for Al-Ittihad and the prospect of several colleagues following him to the Middle East has thrust Saudi Arabia’s growing influence in football under the spotlight. The potential flow of players from the big-spending Stamford Bridge club to the Gulf state has raised eyebrows in recent days amid allegations that the move could be a ploy to help it meet Financial Fair Play requirements. Here, the PA news agency takes a look recent developments and how the Premier League could be affected. Why are Chelsea offloading players? The Blues have spent over £600million on players since American businessman Todd Boehly completed his takeover in May last year, including a £106.8million January swoop for World Cup winner Enzo Fernandez. They also splashed out £52million for RB Leipzig striker Christopher Nkunku earlier this week. Sales of the likes of Timo Werner and Jorginho have offset that expenditure only minimally and with the club having reported a loss of £121million for the 2021-22 season, Financial Fair Play rules which dictate that clubs can only make losses of £105million over three seasons are an issue. Which players are reportedly involved? Kante’s departure to the Gulf state may not be the last from Chelsea. Kalidou Koulibaly, Edouard Mendy, Romelu Lukaku, Hakim Ziyech and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have also been linked with switches to Saudi clubs. They are not alone either – Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves is expected to complete a move to Al-Hilal with former Manchester United star Cristiano Ronaldo’s switch to Al-Nassr in January having established a clear pathway. Why are so many players heading for Saudi Arabia? The money on offer may have something to do with it. The Middle East state’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, took controlling stakes in four Saudi Pro League clubs – Al-Ahli, Al-Ittihad, Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr – earlier this month as part of the wider ‘Vision 2030’ plan to diversify the Saudi economy. The country’s rulers also believe a thriving professional sports scene will help drive up grassroots activity levels in the kingdom. The Saudis have signalled their intention to mount a bid to host the 2030 World Cup, and raising the standard and profile of the domestic league could prove crucial to that mission. PIF has the financial clout to recruit big names to the cause with Karim Benzema having already agreed to join Al-Ittihad. It is not the first time an emerging league has adopted similar tactics. Pele, Franz Beckenbauer and Bobby Moore all played in the North American Soccer League at the end of their respective careers, while China has lured a host of top-flight stars to its Super League in recent years. Public Investment Fund – that name sounds familiar? It should. PIF holds an 80 per cent stake in Newcastle United, who have invested in excess of £250million in new signings since the Amanda Staveley-led consortium in which it is the major partner completed its buy-out at St James’ Park in October 2021. The Magpies surged to a fourth-place finish in last season’s Premier League and secured Champions League football for the first time in 20 years to the delight of a fanbase which has been reinvigorated despite concerted criticism over the source of the club’s new-found wealth. PIF, whose governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan is Newcastle’s chairman, is also a key player in the controversial merger between the LIV Golf series and the PGA and DP World Tours which has prompted fresh accusations of sportswashing. Why all the fuss about Chelsea? This is where it gets interesting. Private equity firm Clearlake Capital Group provided around 60 per cent of the funding for Boehly’s £2.5billion takeover and has underwritten much of the investment since; PIF is an investor with Clearlake. Financial experts have suggested such is the size of Clearlake’s portfolio that while some PIF money may form part of its holding in Chelsea, there is no direct link and therefore no risk of breaching Premier League rules which prohibit ownership of two clubs. However, the perception in some quarters is that any existing relationship between the Blues, the sovereign wealth fund and the four domestic clubs it now controls could allow them to sell on players for inflated fees and thereby reduce their FFP burden. What has been said about the situation? Former Manchester United and England defender Gary Neville, co-owner of League Two Salford, is unimpressed. Speaking to BBC Sport, Neville said: “The Premier League should put an instant embargo on transfers to Saudi Arabia to ensure the integrity of the game isn’t being damaged. Checks should be made on the appropriateness of the transactions.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Newcastle hoping to push through club-record deal for AC Milan’s Sandro Tonali Government and PFA want review of pitch perimeter safety after serious injury CAS: Impossible to put timescale on final decision in Kamila Valieva doping case

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